Day 3 - Floyd, VA to Sparta, NC

Well, today I had to call "Uncle" and did not finish my ride. We had all freaked ourselves out the night before thinking about the 11-mile Category 2 climb first thing in the morning. The weather started out at 40 degrees, but because we were climbing, it was not too uncomfortable. I was climbing slowly and steadily. Seemed to be no problems, except my legs never felt like they warmed up. The first 11 miles were good. I was so happy. We met our crew after the climb, then took off for the next leg - 25 miles of ups and downs (there seems to be no flat riding on the BRP). At mile 31 I still felt fine. My legs were sore, but still no big deal. Then over the next few miles, my legs really started to feel wooden. I was having deja vu from the Cycle Oregon leg injury last year. At mile 37, I was totally bonked and in considerable pain. It took 12 painfully slow miles to meet the team at the lunch stop. I knew I was going to sag the rest of the day.

It's 8:40 PM and I'm still not feeling 100%. We will hope for the best tomorrow! Here are the photos from the day.

Here's my spider web of electrical device power charging.


Temperature at breakfast time. Brrrr!


I learned that there is "city ham" (sugar cured) and "country ham" (salt cured). Our breakfast house served both.


Here's a shot of Janie's country ham.


I ordered "biscuit gravy." It was disgusting. I could not eat it. Jettie has been ordering grits every day. She can't get enough.


Here is a shot of Hotel Floyd. It was super cute and totally environmentally friendly. We would expect nothing less from the "alternative" town of Floyd.


Here are Thurman and Trevor heading out. Paul gave us girls a 6-mile jump to get us from Floyd back to the Blue Ridge Parkway. Wait, I see Rod in the background. We have not yet had the pleasure of riding with our mountain biker buddy.


Beautiful countryside.


We found some sweet and very vocal cows. Janie was calling them elephants. I admit their bellows sounds faintly trumpety. California cows are much more quiet, I think.





Jettie and lovely pavement. Very nicely maintained asphalt here on the BRP.


We saw dozens of "wooly bears" crossing the road. I dodged as many as I could. Cutest!


Here is the location of the annual "Floyd Fest" a new and growing music festival.





At the first break stop. Janie and Paul are conferring over the next section of the route, which is posted on the side of the van there.


And we are off. Lots of farmlands and hay along the roads.


Hey!!! Hay!!!


More rolling valleys along the ridge.


Well, we have all now succumbed to painful undercarriages. My RAGBRAI sister, Debbie, turned me on to Vagisil - a cyclist's best friend. There is a wonderful numbing substance in this nice-smelling stuff. No matter what is ailing your underside, after 10 minutes, you will be comfortably numb. Although my rash is worse than ever, today I kept it numb. Wish I had used this yesterday. I successfully rode 3 days of RAGBRAI with an open saddle sore because of this magical stuff. Here's Jett getting some roadside relief.


Here is a shot from the van after Jett and I called it a day. Paul is a dream to watch on the bike.


Here's Janie the Great!


And I barely got a shot of speedy Trevor. He doesn't look like a super cyclist (especially on his Bike Friday), but he's an animal!


Jett's lucky number displayed on our BRP mile markers.


At the pick-up section waiting for the riders to come in, we met up with the friendliest malamute ever. His name is Koda. Sweet lovey boy.


There's Sugar in the background. We miss our Max!


I went for a nature walk while waiting for the roadies to come in. There are lots of beautiful butterflies here.


A hidden creek!



And the Thurmanator was the first to arrive. This guy is amazingly fast. Here's Rod securing Thurman's bike for the trip from BRP to the town of Sparta.


Here's a local park ranger. Quite the character. He was trying to freak us out by telling us that the 230 miles we already covered was the "beginner's level."


Janie the Great was EFI for the day. She is so much stronger (and happier) than 2 days ago...


After Thurman shared with us that he had 2 irritations on his cheeks ("One on each side, so at least I'm balanced."), we convinced him that he needed some Vagisil. We made a stop at the drug store in Sparta and loaded up in the feminine hygiene aisle.


Here is a "hex" sign on the side of our hotel in Sparta. According to Rod, these hex signs keep out the "haints." Never heard of such a thing. All the same, I am happy we will be safe from haints during our stay.


Janie bought a BRP puzzle for her sister. She's quite pleased with her purchase and her ride today.


Rod is securing all the bikes atop the van. He cabled and locked them all up. I suppose they'll be safe in the parking lot!


Finally dinner time at the local pizza joint. Janie and Jettie are saying "Cheese" while holding cheese. Goofy girls.



That's it for Day 3. Let's hope I bounce back tomorrow. BRP is lovely in the van, but 10000% times better by bike. And our weather is so gorgeous. I'd rather be out there!